I’m sure
that we have looked at the world around us, lamented over man’s inhumanity to
man; the crime, the shootings, the hundreds of families that are now without
retirement funds because the executives managing the company they worked for
have proven themselves to be thieves.The hundreds of innocent children slaughtered in abortion mills every
day, the sin of gambling that has become the gaming industry, no longer a shame
to be hidden in the back alleys and undesirable sections of our city; not just
tolerated as a evil that we haven’t quite gotten control of, but touted and
honored by our chambers of commerce as one of the major attractions for this area;
and we ask ourselves why?

I think we
can find some parallels in the Old Testament.When we look at the city of Jerusalem
prior to their captivity we can find many things in common with their condition
in that day and the condition of our world today and of its people and some
admonition for us as well.

Read Jeremiah 6:10-16

Jeremiah,
the “weeping prophet” was sent to warn God’s people to return to the Lord.His pleas to them, his tears for their
rebellion, God’s warnings to them to repent fill the
books of Jeremiah and Lamentations.He
writes that Israel
had forgotten the Lord:

Jeremiah 2:32“CAN A MAID FORGET
HER ORNAMENTS, or A BRIDE HER ATTIRE? YET MY PEOPLE HAVE FORGOTTEN ME DAYS
WITHOUT NUMBER.”

They had forsaken God; turned to worship idols, ignored
God’s laws and forsaken the teaching of their fathers
and so have people today.People today
have forsaken God for the idols of religions devised by man, turned to worship
the idols of money, pleasure and self-satisfaction and counted the teaching of
the Word of God as nothing.

Jeremiah 2:13“FOR MY PEOPLE HAVE COMMITTED TWO EVILS; THEY
HAVE FORSAKEN ME THE FOUNTAIN OF LIVING WATERS, and HEWED THEM OUT
CISTERNS, BROKEN CISTERNS, THAT CAN HOLD NO WATER.”

They had abandoned the wells of the living waters of God and
dug or hewed themselves out cisterns or wells that would not provide water,
would not sustain their spiritual needs as Jesus promised the Samaritan woman (John 4) therefore Jeremiah describes
them as broken, useless for any spiritual purpose.

Jeremiah 13:10“THIS EVIL PEOPLE, WHICH REFUSE TO HEAR MY
WORDS, WHICH WALK IN THE IMAGINATION OF THEIR HEART, AND WALK AFTER OTHER GODS,
TO SERVE THEM, AND TO WORSHIP THEM, SHALL EVEN BE AS THIS GIRDLE, WHICH IS GOOD
FOR NOTHING.”

Judah
had corrupted God’s teaching and their worship to God and so have men
today.They have corrupted the word of
God and teach things as God’s word that never were and never will be.They pretend to translate scripture but in
actuality rewrite it to better suit their false doctrines.They have corrupted the worship of God with
additions never authorized, desired or even contemplated by God as he
instructed first century Christians.

Then sadly
the prophet says:

Jeremiah 5:31“THE PROPHETS
PROPHESY FALSELY, AND THE PRIESTS BEAR RULE BY THEIR MEANS; AND MY PEOPLE LOVE to
have it SO: AND WHAT WILL YE DO IN THE END THEREOF?”

The entire
pattern of their departure, and their continued rebellion, is found in our text
given at the beginning, Jeremiah 6:10-16.In these verses, the prophet describes the
departure of Israel
in five steps.And we can apply these to
our society in this country today.Conditions that were prevalent then are with us now.The spiritual attitudes that led to their
downfall are found today in the religious world both within and especially
outside of those who consider themselves to be congregations of the church
of Christ.And the five steps that Jeremiah illustrates
that led them to turn away from God still plague mankind today.

They Refused to Listen to the Word of God

Jeremiah 6:10“TO WHOM SHALL I
SPEAK, AND GIVE WARNING, THAT THEY MAY HEAR? BEHOLD, THEIR EAR is
UNCIRCUMCISED, AND THEY CANNOT HEARKEN: BEHOLD, THE WORD OF THE LORD IS UNTO
THEM A REPROACH; THEY HAVE NO DELIGHT IN IT.”

God spoke.But the
people refused to hear.They would not
listen to the truth of God.Jesus spoke
of his generation:

Matthew 13:15“FOR
THIS PEOPLE'S HEART IS WAXED GROSS, AND their EARS ARE DULL OF HEARING, AND
THEIR EYES THEY HAVE CLOSED; LEST AT ANY TIME THEY SHOULD SEE WITH their
EYES AND HEAR WITH their EARS, AND SHOULD UNDERSTAND
WITH their
HEART, AND SHOULD BE CONVERTED, AND I SHOULD HEAL THEM.”

When people refuse to hear God’s word, He cannot guide their
lives, for He guides us through the word which he gave us.

Throughout
history, man has often refused to listen to what God says.Peter wrote of some:

II Peter 3:5“FOR THIS THEY WILLINGLY
ARE IGNORANT OF…”

This willful ignorance of God’s word led the nation of Israel
to a level depravity that is further described by the prophet Isaiah:

Isaiah 30:9-10“THAT THIS is A REBELLIOUS PEOPLE,
LYING CHILDREN, CHILDREN that WILL NOT HEAR THE LAW OF THE
LORD: WHICH SAY TO THE SEERS, SEE NOT; AND TO THE PROPHETS, PROPHESY NOT UNTO
US RIGHT THINGS, SPEAK UNTO US SMOOTH THINGS, PROPHESY DECEITS:”

There are still many who seem to think they know more about
life than God does!But God made man (Genesis 1:26-27), and He has given man his purpose in life (Ecclesiastes 12:13).No one can better chart the course of life
for man than his Creator.As Jeremiah
wrote,

Jeremiah 10:23“O LORD, I KNOW THAT
THE WAY OF MAN is NOT IN HIMSELF: it is NOT IN MAN THAT WALKETH TO
DIRECT HIS STEPS.”

When Jesus
sent out the apostles, gave us our commission He said,

Mark 16:15-16“AND
HE SAID UNTO THEM, GO YE INTO ALL THE
WORLD, AND PREACH THE GOSPEL TO EVERY CREATURE.HE THAT BELIEVETH AND IS BAPTIZED SHALL BE SAVED; BUT HE THAT BELIEVETH
NOT SHALL BE DAMNED.”

When they preached the gospel, some considered it to be
“FOOLISHNESS” (ICorinthians 1:18) and many still do today.Notice the result:

Romans 1:21-22“BECAUSE THAT, WHEN THEY KNEW GOD, THEY GLORIFIED him
NOT AS GOD, NEITHER WERE THANKFUL; BUT BECAME VAIN IN THEIR IMAGINATIONS, AND
THEIR FOOLISH HEART WAS DARKENED.PROFESSING THEMSELVES TO BE WISE, THEY BECAME FOOLS,”v24.“WHEREFORE GOD ALSO GAVE THEM UP TO
UNCLEANNESS THROUGH THE LUSTS OF THEIR OWN HEARTS, TO DISHONOUR THEIR OWN
BODIES BETWEEN THEMSELVES:”

Romans 1:28 “AND
EVEN AS THEY DID NOT LIKE TO RETAIN GOD IN THEIR KNOWLEDGE, GOD GAVE THEM OVER
TO A REPROBATE MIND, TO DO THOSE THINGS WHICH ARE NOT CONVENIENT;” or right, or
good or proper

When people refuse to be guided by the word of God, moral
depravity has always been the result and will continue to be the result until
the end of time.

They Were Obsessed with Material Things

Jeremiah 6:13“FOR FROM THE LEAST OF THEM EVEN UNTO THE
GREATEST OF THEM EVERY ONE is GIVEN TO COVETOUSNESS; AND FROM
THE PROPHET EVEN UNTO THE PRIEST EVERY ONE DEALETH FALSELY.”

Avid desire for material gain often leads to immoral means
of obtaining it.When people become
obsessed with a desire for things,
it’s like any other addiction; they will justify in their own minds almost any
action necessary to fulfill those desires.

The folly
of seeking earthly things is evident to all who will but open their eyes.Rich men die and leave their fortunes for
others to fight over.And they lead
empty lives, because man has a higher purpose than getting rich.As Jesus said:

Luke 12:15“AND HE SAID UNTO
THEM, TAKE HEED, AND BEWARE OF
COVETOUSNESS: FOR A MAN'S LIFE CONSISTETH NOT IN THE ABUNDANCE OF THE THINGS
WHICH HE POSSESSETH.”

He then told the story of a man who spent his life getting
rich, but left God out of his life.At
his death, God asked:

For a man to spend his life, and soul, to gain only material
things that are left behind at death is the ultimate of foolishness.Yet that seems to be the pursuit of the vast
majority of people today, else the gambling dens would close their doors, the
lottery vendors would go out of business, and the prisons would be empty of
thieves.

The Bible
says:

I Timothy 6:7“FOR WE BROUGHT NOTHING
INTO this
WORLD, and it is CERTAIN WE CAN CARRY NOTHING OUT.”v10“FOR THE LOVE OF
MONEY IS THE ROOT OF ALL EVIL:…”

Matthew 6:19-20“LAY
NOT UP FOR YOURSELVES TREASURES UPON EARTH, WHERE MOTH AND RUST DOTH CORRUPT,
AND WHERE THIEVES BREAK THROUGH AND STEAL: BUT LAY UP FOR YOURSELVES TREASURES
IN HEAVEN, WHERE NEITHER MOTH NOR RUST DOTH CORRUPT, AND WHERE THIEVES DO NOT
BREAK THROUGH NOR STEAL:”

For those who look to God for guidance, their eyes are not
on this world or this life as Paul writes in:

II Corinthians 4:18-5:1“WHILE
WE LOOK NOT AT THE THINGS WHICH ARE SEEN, BUT AT THE THINGS WHICH ARE NOT SEEN:
FOR THE THINGS WHICH ARE SEEN are TEMPORAL; BUT THE THINGS WHICH
ARE NOT SEEN are ETERNAL.FOR WE KNOW
THAT IF OUR EARTHLY HOUSE OF this TABERNACLE WERE DISSOLVED, WE
HAVE A BUILDING OF GOD, AN HOUSE NOT MADE WITH HANDS, ETERNAL IN THE HEAVENS.”

But those who have denied God for earthly wealth do not look
upon things above.If all we get out of
this life is a grave, is life really worth it all?But we can “LAY UP TREASURES IN HEAVEN” and
go and enjoy them there.

I Peter 1:3-4.“BLESSED be THE GOD AND FATHER OF OUR LORD
JESUS CHRIST, WHICH ACCORDING TO HIS ABUNDANT MERCY HATH BEGOTTEN US AGAIN UNTO
A LIVELY HOPE BY THE RESURRECTION OF JESUS CHRIST FROM THE DEAD, TO AN
INHERITANCE INCORRUPTIBLE, AND UNDEFILED, AND THAT FADETH NOT AWAY, RESERVED IN
HEAVEN FOR YOU,”

They Deluded Themselves With Lies

Jeremiah 6:14“THEY HAVE HEALED ALSO THE HURT of
the daughter OF MY PEOPLE SLIGHTLY, SAYING, PEACE, PEACE; WHEN there
is NO PEACE.”

When people walk the wrong path, the devil makes it easy for
them to believe that everything is fine and wonderful.But believing that does not make it
true!That is Jeremiah’s message from
God.And this message is still valid
today.The apostle Paul writes of those
who:

“AND WITH ALL DECEIVABLENESS OF UNRIGHTEOUSNESS IN THEM THAT
PERISH; BECAUSE THEY RECEIVED NOT THE LOVE OF THE TRUTH, THAT THEY MIGHT BE
SAVED.AND FOR THIS CAUSE GOD SHALL SEND
THEM STRONG DELUSION, THAT THEY SHOULD BELIEVE A LIE:” II Thessalonians 2:10-11

When truth is not accepted, error and lies will be.But Jesus still declares:

John 8:32“AND YE SHALL KNOW THE TRUTH, AND THE TRUTH
SHALL MAKE YOU FREE.”

There are
still religious people who have “ITCHING EARS”(II
Timothy4:3-4)and they demand preachers who will preach
what they want.The Israelites had folks
like that.They insisted that the
prophet cry, “PEACE, PEACE,” even though God was telling them through the words
of Jeremiah that due to their rebellion there could be no peace in their
land.But lies don’t help us.If a man has cancer, telling him it is only
indigestion will not cure it; neither will it save his life!Lies in medicine will not cure the sick
patient; lies in religion, will not cure the sick soul.

The Lord
tells us:

I Peter 1:22“SEEING YE HAVE PURIFIED YOUR SOULS IN
OBEYING THE TRUTH THROUGH THE SPIRIT UNTO UNFEIGNED LOVE OF THE BRETHREN, see
that ye LOVE ONE ANOTHER WITH A PURE HEART FERVENTLY:”

Trusting and following false teaching will never save
anyone.Many today teach salvation “by
faith only” because it is what people want to hear.But God says:

James 2:24“YE SEE THEN HOW
THAT BY WORKS A MAN IS JUSTIFIED, AND NOT BY FAITH ONLY.”

People are encouraged to “join the church of your choice,”
but God never taught that.And those in
man-made churches never even consider how that idea degrades Christ and the
blood with which He purchased His church.Jesus tells Peter:

Matthew 16:18“AND I SAY ALSO UNTO THEE, THAT THOU ART
PETER, AND UPON THIS ROCK I WILL BUILD MY CHURCH; AND THE GATES OF HELL SHALL
NOT PREVAIL AGAINST IT.”

And Paul tells the Ephesian elders:

Acts 20:28“TAKE HEED THEREFORE
UNTO YOURSELVES, AND TO ALL THE FLOCK, OVER THE WHICH THE HOLY GHOST HATH MADE
YOU OVERSEERS, TO FEED THE CHURCH OF GOD,
WHICH HE HATH PURCHASED WITH HIS OWN BLOOD.”

Oh, the price that Jesus paid for our souls!But men in rebellion; ignore His teachings
and in this day cry “peace, peace,” but they will find in the day of judgment that they will have no peace for eternity.

They Were Not Ashamed, Could Not Blush

Jeremiah 6:15“WERE THEY ASHAMED
WHEN THEY HAD COMMITTED ABOMINATION? NAY, THEY WERE NOT AT ALL ASHAMED, NEITHER
COULD THEY BLUSH: THEREFORE THEY SHALL FALL AMONG THEM THAT FALL: AT THE TIME
THAT I VISIT THEM THEY SHALL BE CAST DOWN, SAITH THE LORD.”

After all that Israel
had done, they should have been ashamed.But they had progressed so far into immoralities that they had lost the
ability to blush!For allowing lawsuits
within their fellowship, the church at Corinth
was told by Paul:

I Corinthians 6:5“I SPEAK TO YOUR SHAME. IS
IT SO, THAT THERE IS NOT A WISE MAN AMONG YOU? NO, NOT ONE
THAT SHALL BE ABLE TO JUDGE BETWEEN HIS BRETHREN?”

Why did Adam and Eve after having broken God’s commandment
hide their bodies behind makeshift garments of fig leaves and then try to hide
themselves from God?

Genesis 3:7-8“AND THE EYES OF THEM BOTH WERE OPENED, AND
THEY KNEW THAT THEY were NAKED; AND THEY SEWED FIG LEAVES TOGETHER, AND MADE
THEMSELVES APRONS.AND THEY HEARD THE
VOICE OF THE LORD GOD WALKING IN THE GARDEN IN THE COOL OF THE DAY: AND ADAM
AND HIS WIFE HID THEMSELVES FROM THE PRESENCE OF THE LORD GOD AMONGST THE TREES
OF THE GARDEN.”

When they ate of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil
they for the first time recognized that there was such a thing as evil.When they recognized evil they suddenly
realized that their bodies were naked. That
now had a different meaning than it did before and they were ashamed.When God came to walk with them as was his
practice they knew that they had done wrong, and they were ashamed again to face
their Creator.

We live in
a permissive society.The immoral deeds
of the stars of TV, movie, sports and even politics can be emblazoned across
newspapers and magazines coast to coast with little effect on their popularity.Hardly anyone is ashamed for their
misdeeds.We, as a people, have
forgotten how to blush.The Bible says:

Ephesians 5:12“FOR IT IS A SHAME
EVEN TO SPEAK OF THOSE THINGS WHICH ARE DONE OF THEM IN SECRET.”

But I think many people take pride in just how immoral they
can be.And they flaunt their immorality
on TV talk shows and magazine interviews.Again God says:

Philippians 3:18-19“(FOR MANY WALK, OF WHOM I HAVE TOLD YOU
OFTEN, AND NOW TELL YOU EVEN WEEPING, that theyare THE ENEMIES OF THE
CROSS OF CHRIST: WHOSE END is DESTRUCTION, WHOSE GOD is
their BELLY, AND whose GLORY is IN THEIR SHAME, WHO
MIND EARTHLY THINGS.)”

What was
true in Israel;
is also true within the world today and even, too often, in the Lord’s church
as well.This permissiveness creeps into
the church with vulgar speech, fornication, adultery, indecent clothing and
other forms of worldliness blurring and blending the division between the
church and the world where there should be sharp distinction.And many things that would have made both men
and women blush in my youth are now accepted without so much as a thought or a
glance.

They Rejected the Only Possible Cure

Jeremiah 6:16“THUS SAITH THE
LORD, STAND YE IN THE WAYS, AND SEE, AND ASK FOR THE OLD PATHS, WHERE is
THE GOOD WAY, AND WALK THEREIN, AND YE SHALL FIND REST FOR YOUR SOULS. BUT THEY
SAID, WE WILL NOT WALK therein.”

Here is revealed the only way back to God: “THE OLD PATHS.”
When the Ephesian church drifted, Jesus told them:

Revelation 2:4-5“NEVERTHELESS
I HAVE somewhat AGAINST THEE, BECAUSE THOU HAST LEFT THY FIRST
LOVE.REMEMBER THEREFORE FROM WHENCE
THOU ART FALLEN, AND REPENT, AND DO THE FIRST WORKS; OR ELSE I WILL COME UNTO THEE
QUICKLY, AND WILL REMOVE THY CANDLESTICK OUT OF HIS PLACE, EXCEPT THOU REPENT.”

That is what Jeremiah told Israel.And that is what God is telling this world
today.

In the
midst of all the “modern” things that surround us, we need to be constantly reminded
of the need to go back to “THE OLD PATHS.”Those values of yesteryear are still to be exalted today - when a man’s
word was his bond, when no one had to lock his doors and life and property were
safe, and honesty and purity were so common they were taken for granted.These things are based on God’s word, and the
morality which He reveals.And we need
to go back to “the old paths” in
religion.With hundreds of man-made
churches and conflicting doctrines abounding we need to hear the words of Jude
as he wrote to the first century churches:

Jude v3“BELOVED, WHEN I GAVE ALL DILIGENCE TO WRITE
UNTO YOU OF THE COMMON SALVATION, IT WAS NEEDFUL FOR ME TO WRITE UNTO YOU, AND
EXHORT YOU THAT YE SHOULD EARNESTLY CONTEND FOR THE FAITH WHICH WAS ONCE DELIVERED
UNTO THE SAINTS.”

The “OLD
PATHS” of the gospel reveal that our Lord built only one church (Matthew 16:18), which is the “ONE
BODY” (Ephesians 1:22-23, 4:4), He adds the saved to that
church (Acts 2:47) and He
purchased that church with His own blood (Acts
20:28).The “old guide” is the inspired word of God (II Timothy 3:16-17), which gives us “ALL THINGS THAT
PERTAIN TO LIFE AND GODLINESS” (II Peter
1:3).This Book reveals the “old
salvation”(Mark 16:16), the “old name” (Acts 11:26; I Peter 4:16) and the “old hope” (I Peter 1:3-5).

May God
help us do better than Israel!Let us heed the plea to walk in “THE OLD
PATHS” which God has revealed.Israel
said, “We will not walk therein.”

What about
you, my friend?Are you a child of God
having been born again of water and the spirit?If not, believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, declare that belief
through your confession before men as the Ethiopian did in Acts 8:37.Turn away; repent of your sins as Jesus
tells in Luke 13:3.And also as the Ethiopian did take advantage
of the nearby water to be baptized into Christ as us written in Acts 8:38, put on Christ and become a child of God.Or if you have sin in your life that you need
to take to God asking for forgiveness; come in repentance, let us pray for you
and with you for God to forgive you as we’re told in James 5:16.If you have
need, won’t you come now as we stand and sing?